Lost in a Dream

Chapter 4

"The City of Tempest, or the Dreamland-City, as many sorcerers call it.-" Shiloh stopped reading for a second, as the whispers seemed to come back. "Sorcerers? Dreamland City? None of this makes any sense."

Yet, he kept reading. Something in his mind told him he had to read this. Like an urge to itch something, that won't be itched until you scratch the right spot "-is a city that is created from the mind of a sorcerer."

A sudden bump behind Shiloh made him stop reading briefly, but he continued on, not letting himself be so easily stopped. "This city is created as a by-product of a sleeping curse. This curse is designed to create a dreamland so real, that the sorcerer's spirit is drawn out from his body, and trapped in a new dimension, or dream-dimension, created by the curse itself. The few sorcerers who have managed to return from this city have described it as being like a tempest; cold, continuous, and a powerful whirlwind that pulls you in, and doesn't let go."

The whispering that had disappeared before returned, however briefly, and caused a break in Shiloh's concentration. "The only way for a sorcerer to break free from this curse is for the sorcerer themselves to completely reject the city, and it's truths. Otherwise, they will remain trapped, forced to live each day out, over and over again. However, should they manage to break free from the world for even a moment, they may start to witness the breakdown of the spell. Should this freedom from the curse continue, they must find a way to release their spirit from the cures's hold, lest they be broken down with the spell."

A strange sound began to fill the back of the room, and Shiloh began to notice that the air seemed to tingle with the prescience of another being. "This is not the biggest danger to said sorcerer, however. For, if a sorcerer manages to break free for a short while, but does not break free completely, their brief awakening will trigger the arrival of the Guardian. This is a guard, created from the sorcerer's own mind, and is designed to prevent the sorcerer from returning to his body, thereby destroying their spirit in the breakdown of the curse."

The sound of footsteps approaching made Shiloh jump. He turned around, the book closing behind him, and saw something that took the words from his lips.

A figure, around six and one half, to seven feet tall stood before him. It was wearing armor that looked like a mixture of blue and black metal, which gleamed in the dim-light of the room. It held a massive staff, with a gemstone that gleamed a blue color, crackling with electricity.

"Who-who are you?" Shiloh asked shakily, rising to his feet. He felt himself beginning to sweat, as he slowly backed away from the pedestal. "Wha-what do you want from me?"

"Saphire Silverflame." The figure spoke, it's voice muffled by it's helmet. It seemed to have no true gender, distinguishable by it's armor or its voice. It began to plod forward, the footsteps creating a loud, pounding sound, amplified by the metal boots. "The lost mage. You will never return to  the mortal world."

Shiloh kept backing away, falling onto his hands as he landed on the cold stone floor. "Ple-please, just leave me alone."

The figure did not back down, instead raising it's staff. As it did, the staff glowed blue, then transformed into a sword, not once losing the gleaming blue color of it's power. "I hereby destroy your spirit, and thus, your magick. You will never see the light of day again. In neither dreamland nor the realm of the mundane."

"No, please!" Shiloh cried, backing up, until his back was to a bookshelf. He raised his hands in the air in front of him, trying to calm the figure before him, though he knew it wasn't going to make a difference.

The figure in front of him remained silent this time, and simply raised the sword high, preparing to bring it down in a powerful, arcing swing. Shiloh raised his hands in front of his face, preparing himself for the end. And that was when it happened.

Just as the figure swung the sword down to slice him clean in two, silvery-white energy flew out from Shiloh's hands, creating a shield, which repelled the blow from the sword. The figure was thrown off it's feet by the sheer power of the retaliation, and was thrown against the far wall. Unfortunately, it only seemed dazed; it moved every now and then, but didn't show any signs of getting back up. This was what Shiloh needed.

Moving quickly, Shiloh got up, and raced over to the bookshelf that he had been at earlier, taking down the first book he could find that seemed to have something to do with spells. Just as he did this, another book fell off the shelf right next to it. At first, Shiloh ignored it, but that was before he got a second glance at the title.

The title of the book was Truths and Clues about Magic. Shiloh instantly knew something, the moment he saw that book. "It's the final breadcrumb." He murmured to himself. He didn't know how he knew, but something told him that this would help him finally learn the truth about the world around him. That he would finally understand how he had gotten to Tempest City in the first place.

Shiloh quickly picked it up, and opened it to the table of contents. Then, he noticed the figure in the corner slowly becoming more coherent, and he doubled his efforts.

He had finally found a page of battle spells, when it happened. The murmuring grew louder, and the air around him suddenly became a whirlwind of silver and white. He began to remember, that he came from a world called Earth, where magic merged with technology. And he remembered who he was. It wasn't everything, but it was enough to set him free.